Alessandro Del Piero

This article is about the Australian rules club, for the Football (soccer) club, see Melbourne Victory FC.

Melbourne Football Club
File:MFCLogo2008.jpg
Names
Full name	Melbourne Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Demons, The Dees
2008 season
Leading goalkicker	Brad Miller
Best and fairest	Cameron Bruce
Club details
Founded	1859
Colours	Navy Blue  and red
Competition	Australian Football League
Chairman	Jim Stynes
Coach	Dean Bailey
Captain(s)	James McDonald and Cameron Bruce (interim)
Ground(s)	Melbourne Cricket Ground (capacity: 100,000)
Other information
Official website	www.melbournefc.com.au

Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Demons, is an Australian rules football club playing in the Australian Football League, based in Melbourne, Victoria.

The club has an unusual claim in international sport: in 1858, some of its members invented the code of football that it still plays. The club has therefore played at the highest level of its sport longer than any other sporting club. It was a foundation member of the Victorian Football Association (1877), the game's second-oldest governing body and competition. In 1897, it was a foundation member of the competition now known as the Australian Football League, which remains the most elite in the code.

The club celebrates the 150th anniversary of the first meeting of its founding members in 2008 and published "Melbourne FC - Since 1858 - An Illustrated History" in 2008. It commemorates its formation by naming "150 Heroes as well as a birthday logo, which appears on its official jersey.

Club history

The MFC was an offshoot of the Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC), established in 1834 and occupiers of what many consider to be Australia's finest sporting arena the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG, known as "The G").

Members of the MCC first met on August 7, 1858 to arrange a trial football match, however the football club was formally established as a separate sporting organisation on May 14 1859.

On May 17 that year, at the Parade Hotel in East Melbourne, Tom Wills, W.J. Hammersley and J.B. Thompson (some sources also include Thomas Smith and/or H.C.A. Harrison), wrote the first set of written rules for Australian rules football. By 1866, several other clubs had also adopted an updated version of Melbourne's rules.

After a visit to England by one of the club's officials, the colours of red and blue were officially adopted by the club. Shortly following, the club began wearing a predominately red strip and became informally known by supporters as the "Redlegs".

The name "Redlegs" was coined after the Melbourne Official returned from his trip to England with one set of red and another of blue woollen socks. Melbourne wore the red set whilst the blue set were, allegedly, given to the Carlton football club. This may be the source of Carlton's nickname, 'The Blueboys'.

Founders of the VFA

In 1877, the club became a foundation member of the Victorian Football Association. During this time, the club was known as the "Fuchsias".

In 1889 the MFC was reincorporated into the MCC, and for many years the two organisations remained unhappily linked. The MFC's close association with the MCC allowed it to claim the MCG as its home ground and gave it access to a wealthy membership base, but Melbourne's reputation as an "establishment" club was not always an advantage. The MCC members' automatic right to attend all events at the ground, including MFC football games. This meant many potential members had a reduced incentive to join the football club, and Melbourne's membership remains among the lowest in the competition.

Entry to the VFL

The MFC joined the breakaway Victorian Football League at its formation in 1897, and has been a part of the competition ever since. The team became known as the "Redlegs". This nickname is still used by certain membership and supporter groups within the club.

In 1900 Melbourne won its first VFL premiership, traditionally known as "The Flag," although since 1959 it has been complemented annually by a premiership trophy. They defeated Fitzroy. Melbourne's greatest player of these early years of the VFL was Ivor Warne-Smith, who in 1926 won the club's first Brownlow Medal, the League's annual award for the fairest and best player. In that year Melbourne won its second flag. Warne-Smith won the Brownlow again in 1928.

Age of greatness

File:Melbourne football club 1940 premiers at the mcg.jpg

Melbourne Football Club, 1940 VFL premiers in a photo shoot at the former Melbourne Cricket Club Member's Pavilion

Demons great Norm Smith (during his playing time at Fitzroy), many argue as being a catalyst for the club's early success, then later as a coach

In 1933, the club changed their moniker to the "Demons".

F.V. "Checker" Hughes became Melbourne's coach in 1933, and under his leadership the club entered its era of greatness. In 1939 Melbourne won its third flag, against traditional rivals Collingwood, and in 1940 and 1941 it went on to win two more. In 1946 Melbourne finished second and Don Cordner became the second Demon to win the Brownlow. In 1947 Fred Fanning kicked a record 18 goals in the last game of the season. The following year Melbourne played in the first ever drawn Grand Final, against Essendon. The next week Melbourne came back and won the replay.

Norm Smith became Melbourne's coach in 1952, and the following year Ron Barassi played his first game. These two were to take Melbourne to new heights in the coming years. The Demons made the Grand Final in 1954, losing to Footscray, won the flag in 1955, 1956 and 1957, narrowly lost to Collingwood in 1958, and then won again in 1959 and 1960 (where they avenged their loss against Collingwood). With Smith as coach and Barassi as captain, Melbourne dominated the competition.

In 1964 Melbourne won its 12th flag, beating Collingwood again, and seemed set for a new era of domination. But at the end of the season, in one of the greatest shocks in the history of the game, Barassi left the club to become captain-coach of Carlton. The following year Norm Smith was sacked after a dispute with the club. Although he was soon reinstated, things were never the same again for the Demons. They had appeared in every Grand Final from 1954-1960 and every Finals' Series from 1954-1964, but have not won a flag since.

After the 1954 Grand final loss to Footscray, no team was able to score 100 points against the club until Collingwood in round 5 1963. The next team was Geelong with 110 in round 1 1964. The 1965 season started with 8 wins but only two wins from the next 10 games saw the end of the era. They would have to wait until 1971 before Melbourne ended a season with more wins than losses, and 1987 for Melbourne to make the finals again.

Decades of disappointment

Statue of Melbourne's greatest, Ron Barassi, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground

Poor recruiting zones and management meant that Melbourne, under coaches John Beckwith (1968-70), Ian Ridley (1971-73), Bob Skilton (1974-77), Dennis Jones (1978) and Carl Ditterich (1979-80), languished at the bottom of the League ladder throughout the 1970s. However, in 1971 the club started the season at the top and maintained that position until it lost to Collingwood in round 6. Melbourne was still in second place at the start of the second half of the season but within five weeks was out of the top four and finished with only two more wins and a draw.

Melbourne collected Wooden spoons in 1974 and 1978, but narrowly missed the finals in 1976, the club's fate depending on Carlton beating Footscray in the final round, but the game ended in a draw. In his only season as coach in 1978 Dennis Jones oversaw a wooden spoon but remarkably his team participated in the highest scoring match ever. In 1979 Ditterich came to the club as Captain-Coach but although the team won more games it finished second last.

In 1980 the MFC finally legally separated from the MCC, becoming a public company, in an effort to attract more members and improve the club's finances. The season produced one less win than 1979 (five) but the club finished higher - 9th. It became evident that drastic action was needed for a club that had missed 16 finals series in a row the return of former star Ron Barassi was seen as the cure. When Barassi had left in 1965 it was felt that he would eventually return and his arrival caused much excitement and an expectation of immediate success.

Melbourne 1980s shield logo

In 1981, under the chairmanship of Sir Billy Snedden, Barassi returned to Melbourne as coach and immediately appointed Robert Flower as captain. In Barassi's first year the team finished last, but this was attributed to working out who the willing players were and the club won some powerful victories in the next three seasons. But although Brian Wilson won the Brownlow in 1982, and Peter Moore won it in 1984, Barassi was unable to get the club back into premiership contention.

In 1986 Barassi was replaced by John Northey. Under Northey, Melbourne made the finals in 1987, for the first time since 1964, losing the Preliminary Final to Hawthorn on the last kick of the game after the final siren. It was also the last game played by the team captain Robert Flower. In 1988 the Demons did even better, reaching the Grand Final, only to be defeated, again, by Hawthorn.

From 1987 to 1991 Melbourne had five positive win-loss differentials in successive seasons which the club had not been able to achieve since the 1954-65 era. Thereafter things went downhill for Northey, although Jim Stynes won the Brownlow in 1991. In 1992 the club finished 11th, and Northey was replaced by Neil Balme as coach. Balme got Melbourne into the finals in 1994, but a last game loss to Brisbane saw them drop out of the top eight in 1995, and the club lingered at or near the bottom of the ladder for most of the 1996 season.

Facing Oblivion

By 1996 the club was also in dire financial straits. The board, headed by past player Ian Ridley decided on the desperate step of a merger with Hawthorn. In the ensuing weeks, a passionate debate was fought between pro and anti-merger supporters. In the first few days of this debate, life-long supporters Mark and Anthony Jenkins met with coterie member George Zagon to form the Demon Alternative - an anti-merger group that was to signifiacntly impact on the plans of the incumbent board.

The Demon Alternative recruited members from a wide range of areas but the two most recognised were former player and politician Brian Dixon and Rabbi Joseph Gutnick. The group quickly organised itself into a creditable option for Melbourne supporters; however given the support of the AFL and other factors, when the merger issue was put to a vote slightly more than 50% of Melbourne members supported the Board. In a meeting run on the opposite side of town, the Hawthorn members had rejected their board's proposal and eventually the merger was defeated.

In the aftermath of the merger meetings Ridley focused on a compromise with the Demons Alternative to ensure that Melbourne could continue as a viable business. His board co-opted Gutnick and Mark Jenkins onto the board and a truce of sorts was struck between all parties.

In the months following the 1996 merger vote, the Orthodox rabbi and mining tycoon Joseph Gutnick became president. He put $3 million of his own money into the club, and sacked Balme as coach midway through the 1997 season. In 1998, under new coach Neale Daniher, the club spent most of the season in the top eight and beat the eventual premiers Adelaide in the Qualifying Final. Melbourne also eliminated St Kilda, but lost to North Melbourne in the Preliminary Final. In 1999 Melbourne finished in the bottom three.

Partial revival

In 2000 Daniher took Melbourne to the Grand Final, where however the Demons were convincingly beaten by a rampaging Essendon. The members had expected a new era of success, but in 2001 it was same old story: Melbourne finished 11th. In 2002, although Melbourne again made the finals, Gutnick was voted out by the members.

In 2003 Melbourne plunged into a new crisis, winning only five games for the year and posting a $1 million loss. President Gabriel Szondy resigned and it seemed that Daniher's tenure as coach was under threat. But, continuting the recent trend, in 2004, Melbourne climbed the ladder again, winning 14 games and leading the competition, albeit for one round only, in Round 18. And although the team lost its remaining four games, the club still made the finals, only to lose narrowly to Essendon.

During the 2004 post-season the Demons tragically lost defender Troy Broadbridge in the Asian tsunami, when he was swept off Phi Phi island in Thailand. He was walking along the beach with new wife Trisha Broadbridge when the tsunami struck. He was found on January 3, 2005, and brought home. A funeral was held on January 20, 2005 in recognition to the No. 20 guernsey he wore during his playing days. During the 2005 off-season, the whole team travelled to the island in which Broadbridge was killed to build a new school for those struck by the tsunami. The No.20 jumper was then rested for two years.

Melbourne started 2005 strongly, being in second place after Round 12, however Melbourne soon lost momentum. Going into Round 20, Melbourne looked all but gone for a spot in the finals, yet thanks to two miraculous wins against the Bulldogs and the Cats in Geelong (where Melbourne had not won since the late 1980s), and a defeat of Essendon in the final round, they finished seventh, granting them a spot in an elimination final. Unfortunately, Melbourne was eliminated from the premiership race in the opening week of the finals by Geelong.

In 2006, after a slow start, Melbourne again performed well, and were in the top four by the middle of the season. In a very closely contested tussle for prime ladder positions (i.e.: "top four") Melbourne missed out on the crucial double chance by half a game, leaving them to rue two defeats against last-placed Carlton during the season. Daniher had become the second longest-serving coach in the AFL, and the longest-surviving in the entire history of the VFL-AFL not to have won a premiership. The Demons managed to defeat St Kilda in the first Elimination Final and proceed to the Semi-Finals, but a subsequent loss to Fremantle in Perth put an end to the Demons' finals campaign.

Daniher's departure and rebuilding

2007 was a poor season for Melbourne. After losing their first 9 games through a combination of injury and poor form, they finally broke through with wins against Adelaide and Collingwood. But, following a loss to Richmond the next week, Daniher was sacked by the club, and Mark Riley was instated as caretaker coach. Winning three of their remaining nine games, Melbourne avoided a wooden spoon and finished 14th.

Dean Bailey was appointed as coach for the 2008 season, but success did not follow, as Melbourne lost their first 6 matches, before breaking through with a record comeback win in round 7 against Fremantle. They have since shown some improvement, putting up a good fight in round 9 against top-of-the-ladder team Hawthorn, who were undefeated at the time. Melbourne had to wait until Round 14 for the second win. After good performances against Collingwood, Richmond, and Sydney in the preceding weeks, the Demons defeated Brisbane by a solitary point in the two team's first encounter at the MCG in 9 years.

2008 - Birthday Celebrations and Crisis

Off field, the club remained in serious turmoil. In the first sign of troubles on February 2008, CEO Steve Harris resigned. Paul Gardner addressed the media in response to comments from the club's auditors spelling disaster for the club. Gardner reiterated that the club had posted a $97,000 profit at the end of 2007. Harris was replaced by the high profile former Wimbeldon tennis champion Paul McNamee. Despite celebrating the club's birthday with an official mid-season function at Crown Casino, shortly afterward chairman Paul Gardiner resigned, handing the presidency to former club champion Jim Stynes who revealed a $4.5 million debt which media pundits suggested would cripple the club. Hawthorn's president Jeff Kennett caused controversy with remarks about relocating the Demons to the Gold Coast, something which Stynes spoke against. AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou dispelled the notion that the club's future was in doubt, he admitted that Stynes board faced a huge challenge.. Demons legend, games and goalkicking record holder David Neitz announced his immediate retirement due to injury on May 9th. Stynes wasted no time attempting to change the club's direction and eliminate its debt, commencing a drive called "Debt Demolition", beginning with a call for members to sign up. Under his direction, a new board sacked Paul McNamee after just four months. During McNamee's tenure, he had drawn criticisms for holidaying in Wimbledon to compete in a legends match and after his sacking an attempt to lure Brisbane Lions star Jonathan Brown was also revealed. An August 5 fundraiser raised $1.3 million AUD.

Membership base

Melbourne Football Club has listed a record amount of members in 2008, but still has one of the smallest membership bases in the AFL competition. This is partly because many traditional Melbourne supporters are already members of the Melbourne Cricket Club (around 23% of MCC members have Melbourne Football Club nominated support), which gets them privileged access to the MCG, so they don't see the need to pay for a separate MFC membership. With approximately 21,850 MCC members supporting the football club, if these members were to become full members, the Demons would have one of the largest memberships in the competition. Although previously not allowed, for the 2007/08 season, the Melbourne Football Club are offering MCC members the chance to become official members of the club for a heavily reduced cost, in order to entice members to join. This helped the club to achieve a membership of over 28,000 - well over the club's previous record - even with a poor season on-field. On the 20th June, 2008 a new membership record was set, surpassing the 28,077 of 2007. It was later announced the club finished with 29,619 members, a great effort in such a poor year on-field.

Year	Members	Finishing position²
1998	17,870	4th
1999	19,713	14th
2000	18,227	2nd
2001	22,940	11th
2002	20,152	6th
2003	20,555	14th
2004	25,252	7th
2005	24,220	8th
2006	24,698	5th
2007	28,077	14th
2008	29,619³	16th

³ Club Record.

Current dilemmas

A Melbourne Demons "home" match at Carrara Stadium on the Gold Coast.

Like other struggling Melbourne based clubs, the Demons have sold games to interstate venues, including 1 game to Brisbane in 2005 and an extra game to the Gold Coast, Queensland in 2006 which was transferred in 2007 to Canberra.

The financial and on-field problems of the club are happening against a background of both rationalisation and expansion in the AFL. The 16-team national league grew out of a Melbourne league, and there are still 10 teams based in Melbourne. Despite its great tradition of passionate support for Australian rules football, the weaker teams in Melbourne have struggled against wealthy and successful interstate newcomers. In 1996 the Melbourne based Fitzroy club was forced into a merger with the interstate Brisbane Bears. The AFL's current TV deal requires a 16-team competition and thus it is highly unlikely a team will be allowed to simply fold in the next few years, but Melbourne FC faces similar problems to Fitzroy in terms of financial crisis, thin membership base, political instability and dire playing ability. The AFL policy of aggressive expansion into New South Wales and Queensland means the Melbourne club now faces a similar fate to Fitzroy. The likelihood of Melbourne moving to the Gold Coast is almost gone due to the league's focus on the creation of a new Gold Coast team to play in the TAC Cup by 2009, AFL Queensland by 2010, and enter the AFL in 2011 or 2012, but the AFL has targeted Western Sydney as the site of a new team, so speculation of a relocated future Demons club persists.

Prominent Fans

• John So Lord mayor of Melbourne (No. 1 ticket holder)
• Terry Bracks wife of Steve Bracks (No. 1 female ticket holder)
• Ian Johnson Managing Director, Channel 7, Melbourne
• Hamish Blake Radio Presenter FOX FM (Melbourne)
• Mike Sheahan Herald-Sun Football Writer
• Rob Sitch comedian
• Derryn Hinch news presenter
• Max Walker former cricketer and TV presenter (who played for MFC from 1967-1972)
• Brad Hodge Australian cricket
• Victor Perton former Victorian State Liberal MP
• Beverley O'Connor journalist and club vice-chairman
• David Hobson Opera Singer (Tenor) and TV Celebrity
• Philip Davis Victorian State Liberal MP
• Peter Berner comedian/radio presenter (No.2 Ticket Holder)
• Alan Stockdale Former Victorian Kennett Liberal Government Treasurer
• Mal Walden Television News Presenter
• Ron Walker Fairfax Media Chairman
• Noong Arr Prominent Media Commentator
• Don Argus Chairman of BHP Billiton
• Graeme Samuel Chairman, ACCC
• Ian Henderson, ABC TV newsreader
• Steve Moneghetti (marathon runner)
• Ella Hooper Jesse Hooper (Killing Heidi)
• Nicky Buckley (television personality)
• Geoff Cox (television presenter)
• Bobby Valentine (musician)
• David Bridie (singer/songwriter)
• John Rothfield aka Dr Turf (radio presenter)
• Rob Gell (television weatherman)
• Greg Evans (television personality)
• Jan Sardi (Oscar nominated screenwriter)
• Michael Veitch (comedian and writer)
• Gajan Thiyagarajah

Current squad

As of October 11, 2008:

Melbourne Football Club

Senior list						Rookie list		Coaching staff
1 Steven May  2 Jacob van Rooyen  3 Christian Salem  5 Christian Petracca  6 Caleb Windsor  7 Jack Viney (vc)  8 Jake Lever  9 Charlie Spargo 10 Angus Brayshaw 11 Max Gawn (c) 12 Lachie Hunter 13 Clayton Oliver 14 Jack Billings 15 Ed Langdon 16 Bailey Laurie 17 Jake Bowey 19 Josh Schache 20 Adam Tomlinson		21 Matthew Jefferson 22 Blake Howes 23 Shane McAdam 24 Trent Rivers 25 Tom McDonald 26 Jed Adams 29 Joel Smith 30 Alex Neal-Bullen 31 Bayley Fritsch 32 Tom Sparrow 33 Tom Fullarton 35 Harrison Petty 36 Kysaiah Pickett 37 Kade Chandler 39 Koltyn Tholstrup 40 Taj Woewodin 42 Daniel Turner 50 Ben Brown				4 Judd McVee 18 Jake Melksham 27 Marty Hore 28 Will Verrall 38 Oliver Sestan 41 Kynan Brown 43 Kyah Farris-White (B) 45 Andy Moniz-Wakefield (B)		Head coach Simon Goodwin Assistant coaches Alan Richardson (GM of AFL football performance) Andrew McQualter (midfield) Troy Chaplin (defence) Greg Stafford (forwards) Mark Williams (head of development) Legend: (c) Captain(s) (vc) Vice-captain(s) (B) Category B rookie italics - Inactive player list Long-term injury (ret.) Retired Updated: 11 October 2008 Source(s): Playing list, Coaching staff

Club Honours

VFL/AFL Premierships (1897-1915, 1919-)

• 1900, 1926, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1948, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1960, 1964

VFL/AFL Runners Up (1897-1915, 1919-)

• 1946, 1954, 1958, 1988, 2000

VFL/AFL Minor Premierships (1897-1915, 1919-)

• 1939, 1940, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1964

McClelland Trophies (1951-)

• 1955, 1956, 1958, 1990

Pre-season/Night series Premierships (1956-1971, 1977-)

• 1971, 1987, 1989

Pre-season/Night series Runners Up (1956-1971, 1977-)

• 1969, 1970

VFL Seconds/Reserves Premierships (1919-1999)

• 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1939, 1949, 1956, 1969, 1970, 1984, 1993

VFA Runners Up (1877-1896)

• 1877, 1878, 1893, 1894

Honour Board

The honour board is listed from the first VFL/AFL season and includes the following individual awards:

• Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Medal - awarded to Melbourne Football Club's Best & Fairest. Named after Keith Truscott who died in World War II.
• Leading goalkicker award
• Harold Ball Memorial Trophy - awarded to the Best First Year Player. Named in honour of Harold Ball who died in World War II.

Year	Position	President	Coach	Captain	Best and Fairest	Leading Goalkicker (Total)	Best First Year Player
1897	4th	H. C. A. Harrison		Ned Sutton		Jack Leith (22)
1898	6th	H. C. A. Harrison		Ned Sutton		Charlie Young (21)
1899	6th	H. C. A. Harrison		Eddie Sholl		Jack Leith (21)
1900	1st	H. C. A. Harrison		Dick Wardill		Tommy W. Ryan (24)
1901	5th	H. C. A. Harrison		William C. McLelland		Frank Langley (17)
1902	4th	H. C. A. Harrison		William C. McLelland		Jack Leith (26)
1903	7th	H. C. A. Harrison		William C. McLelland		Vince Coutie (19)
1904	6th	H. C. A. Harrison		William C. McLelland		Vince Coutie (39)
1905	8th	H. C. A. Harrison		Frank Langley		Harry Cordner (16)
1906	8th	H. C. A. Harrison		Arthur Sowden		Basil Onyons (16)
1907	7th		Alex Hall	Vince Coutie		Jack Leith (21)
1908	8th		Alex Hall	Hugh Purse		Vince Coutie (37)
1909	5th		Alex Hall	Bernie Nolan		Harry Brereton (34)
1910	9th		Eddie Drohan	Vince Coutie		Stan Fairbarn (24)
1911	7th			Vince Coutie		Harry Brereton (46)
1912	6th	William C. McLelland	Alex Hall	Alf George		Harry Brereton (56)
1913	9th	William C. McLelland	Alex Hall	Alf George		Mick Maguire (13)
1914	9th	William C. McLelland	Alex Hall	Len Incigneri		Arthur Best (30)
1915	4th	William C. McLelland	Jack McKenzie	Jack McKenzie		Roy Park (35)
1916-1918	-	William C. McLelland	George Heinz	George Heinz
1919	9th	William C. McLelland	George Heinz	George Heinz		George Heinz (15)
1920	8th	William C. McLelland	Gerald Brosnan	George Heinz		Harry Harker (23)
1921	6th	William C. McLelland	Percy Wilson	Percy Wilson		Harry Harker (47)
1922	6th	William C. McLelland	Percy Wilson	Percy Wilson		Harry Harker (47)
1923	9th	William C. McLelland	Percy Wilson	Percy Wilson		Percy Tulloh (31)
1924	8th	William C. McLelland	Gordon Rattray	Albert Chadwick		Percy Tulloh (24)
1925	3	William C. McLelland	Albert Chadwick	Albert Chadwick		Harry Davie (56)
1926	1	William C. McLelland	Albert Chadwick	Albert Chadwick		Harry Moyes (55)
1927	5		Albert Chadwick	Albert Chadwick		Harry Davie (40)
1928	3		Ivor Warne-Smith	Ivor Warne-Smith		Bob C. Johnson (55)
1929	5		Ivor Warne-Smith	Ivor Warne-Smith		Dick Taylor (30)
1930	5		Ivor Warne-Smith	Ivor Warne-Smith		George Margitich (73)
1931	8		Ivor Warne-Smith	Ivor Warne-Smith		George Margitich (66)
1932	9		Ivor Warne-Smith	Ivor Warne-Smith		George Margitich (60)
1933	10		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Ivor Warne-Smith		Bob C. Johnson (62)
1934	6		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Ivor Warne-Smith		Jack Mueller (52)
1935	6		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Ivor Warne-Smith	Allan La Fontaine	Maurie Gibb (59)
1936	3		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Ivor Warne-Smith	Allan La Fontaine	Eric Glass (56)
1937	3		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Ivor Warne-Smith	Jack Mueller	Ron Baggott (51)
1938	5		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Ivor Warne-Smith	Norm Smith	Norm Smith (80)
1939	1		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Ivor Warne-Smith	Jack Mueller	Norm Smith (54)
1940	1		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Ivor Warne-Smith	Ron Baggott	Norm Smith (86)
1941	1		Percy Beames	Percy Beames	Allan La Fontaine	Norm Smith (89)
1942	8		Percy Beames	Percy Beames	Allan La Fontaine	Fred Fanning (37)
1943	7		Percy Beames	Percy Beames	Don Cordner	Fred Fanning (62)
1944	8		Percy Beames	Percy Beames	Norm Smith	Fred Fanning (87)
1945	9		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Norm Smith	Fred Fanning	Fred Fanning (67)
1946	2		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Norm Smith	Jack Mueller	Jack Mueller (58)
1947	6		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Norm Smith	Wally Lock	Fred Fanning (97)
1948	1		Frank 'Checker' Hughes	Don Cordner	Alby Rodda	Lance Arnold (41)
1949	5		Allan La Fontaine	Don Cordner	Len Dockett	Robert McKenzie (40)
1950	4		Allan La Fontaine	Shane McGrath	Denis Cordner	Denis Cordner (36)
1951	12		Allan La Fontaine	Denis Cordner	Noel McMahen	Robert McKenzie (40)
1952	6		Norm Smith	Denis Cordner	Geoff McGivern	Noel Clarke (49)
1953	11		Norm Smith	Denis Cordner	Ken Melville	Robert McKenzie (38)
1954	2		Norm Smith	Geoff Collins	Denis Cordner	Noel Clarke (51)
1955	1		Norm Smith	Noel McMahen	Stuart Spencer	Stuart Spencer (34)
1956	1		Norm Smith	Noel McMahen	Stuart Spencer	Bob B. Johnson (43)
1957	1		Norm Smith	John Beckwith	John Beckwith	Athol Webb (56)
1958	2		Norm Smith	John Beckwith	Laurie Mithen	Ron Barassi, Jr. / Athol Webb (44)
1959	1		Norm Smith	John Beckwith	Laurie Mithen	Ron Barassi, Jr. (46)
1960	1		Norm Smith	Ron Barassi	Brian Dixon	Ian Ridley (38)
1961	3		Norm Smith	Ron Barassi	Ron Barassi	Bob B. Johnson (36)
1962	4		Norm Smith	Ron Barassi	Hassa Mann	Laurie Mithen (37)
1963	3		Norm Smith	Ron Barassi	Hassa Mann	Barry Bourke (48)
1964	1		Norm Smith	Ron Barassi	Ron Barassi	John Townsend (35)
1965	7		Norm Smith	Hassa Mann	John Townsend	John Townsend (34)
1966	11		Norm Smith	Hassa Mann	Terry Leahy	Barrie Vagg (20)
1967	7		Norm Smith	Hassa Mann	Hassa Mann	Hassa Mann (38)
1968	8		John Beckwith	Hassa Mann	Ray Groom	Hassa Mann (29)
1969	12		John Beckwith	Hassa Mann	John Townsend	Ross Dillon (48)
1970	10		John Beckwith	Tassie Johnson	Frank Davis	Ross Dillon (41)
1971	7		Ian Ridley	Frank Davis	Greg Wells	Paul Callery (38)
1972	8		Ian Ridley	Frank Davis	Stan Alves	Greg Parke (63)
1973	10		Ian Ridley	Stan Alves	Carl Ditterich	Ross Brewer (32)
1974	12		Bob Skilton	Stan Alves	Stan Alves	Ross Brewer (40)
1975	10		Bob Skilton	Stan Alves	Laurie Fowler	Greg Wells (32)
1976	6		Bob Skilton	Stan Alves	Greg Wells	Ray Biffin (47)
1977	11		Bob Skilton	Stan Alves	Robert Flower	Ross Brewer (26)
1978	12		Bob Skilton	Stan Alves	Garry Baker	Henry Coles (33)
1979	11		Carl Ditterich	Carl Ditterich	Laurie Fowler	Robert Flower (33)
1980	9	Billy Snedden	Carl Ditterich	Carl Ditterich	Laurie Fowler	Brent Crosswell (31)
1981	12	Billy Snedden	Ron Barassi	Robert Flower	Steven Smith	Mark Jackson (76)
1982	8	Billy Snedden	Ron Barassi	Robert Flower	Steven Icke	Gerard Healy (77)
1983	8	Billy Snedden	Ron Barassi	Robert Flower	Alan Johnson	Robert Flower (40)
1984	9	Billy Snedden	Ron Barassi	Robert Flower	Gerard Healy	Kelvin Templeton (51)
1985	11	Billy Snedden	Ron Barassi	Robert Flower	Danny Hughes	Brian Wilson (40)
1986	11	Billy Snedden, Stuart Spencer	John Northey	Robert Flower	Greg Healy	Greg Healy (35)
1987	3rd	Stuart Spencer	John Northey	Robert Flower	Steven Stretch	Robert Flower (47)
1988	2nd	Stuart Spencer	John Northey	Greg Healy	Steven O'Dwyer	Ricky Jackson (43)
1989	4th	Stuart Spencer	John Northey	Greg Healy	Alan Johnson	Darren Bennett (34)
1990	4th	Stuart Spencer	John Northey	Greg Healy	Garry Lyon	Darren Bennett (87)
1991	4th	Stuart Spencer, Ian Ridley	John Northey	Garry Lyon	Jim Stynes	Allen Jakovich (71)
1992	11th	Ian Ridley	John Northey	Garry Lyon	Glenn Lovett	Allen Jakovich (40)
1993	10th	Ian Ridley	Neil Balme	Garry Lyon	Todd Viney	Allen Jakovich (39)
1994	4th	Ian Ridley	Neil Balme	Garry Lyon	Garry Lyon	Garry Lyon (79)
1995	9th	Ian Ridley	Neil Balme	Garry Lyon	Jim Stynes	Garry Lyon (77)
1996	14th	Ian Ridley, Joseph Gutnick	Neil Balme	Garry Lyon	Jim Stynes	David Neitz (56)
1997	16th	Joseph Gutnick	Neil Balme, Greg Hutchison	Gary Lyon	Jim Stynes	David Neitz (30), Jeff Farmer (30)
1998	4th	Joseph Gutnick	Neale Daniher	Todd Viney	Todd Viney	Jeff Farmer (47)
1999	14th	Joseph Gutnick	Neale Daniher	Todd Viney	David Schwarz	David Neitz (46)
2000	2nd	Joseph Gutnick	Neale Daniher	David Neitz	Shane Woewodin	Jeff Farmer (76)	Matthew Whelan
2001	11th	Joseph Gutnick	Neale Daniher	David Neitz	Adem Yze	Russell Robertson (42)	Scott Thompson
2002	6th	Joseph Gutnick, Gabriel Szondy	Neale Daniher	David Neitz	David Neitz	David Neitz (82)	Steven Armstrong
2003	14th	Gabriel Szondy, Paul Gardner	Neale Daniher	David Neitz	Russell Robertson	David Neitz (65)	Ryan Ferguson
2004	7th	Paul Gardner	Neale Daniher	David Neitz	Jeff White	David Neitz (69)	Aaron Davey
2005	8th	Paul Gardner	Neale Daniher	David Neitz	Travis Johnstone	Russell Robertson (73)	Chris Johnson
2006	5th	Paul Gardner	Neale Daniher	David Neitz	James I. McDonald	David Neitz (68)	Clint Bartram
2007	14th	Paul Gardner	Neale Daniher, Mark Riley	David Neitz	James I. McDonald	Russell Robertson (42)	Ricky Petterd
2008	16th	Paul Gardner, Jim Stynes	Dean Bailey	David Neitz	Cameron Bruce	Brad Miller (26)	Cale Morton

Team of the Century

Melbourne Team of the Century

B:	John Beckwith	Tassie Johnson	Don Cordner
HB:	Noel McMahen	Gary Hardeman	Don Williams
C:	Brian Dixon	Allan La Fontaine	Robert Flower
HF:	Hassa Mann	Ivor Warne-Smith	Garry Lyon
F:	Jack Mueller	Norm Smith	Percy Beames
Foll:	Denis Cordner	Ron Barassi (Captain)	Stuart Spencer
Int:	Frank Adams	Albert Chadwick	Wally Lock
	Laurie Mithen	Jim Stynes	Todd Viney
Coach:	Norm Smith

Stan Alves, Ian Ridley, Bob B. Johnson and Greg Wells were all named as emergencies.

150 Heroes

Melbourne FC announced its "150 Heroes" to celebrate its 150th birthday Crown Casino on Saturday 7 June, 2008. Each player or their closest relative were presented with an official 150 heroes medallion. The criteria for inclusion was games played (minimum of 100), fairest-and-best awards, premierships, Brownlow medals, contribution to the club and State representation. Those who died in the war were judged based on their achievements before their passing. The heroes named were:

Jim Abernethy, Frank Adams, Bill Allen, Stan Alves, Syd Anderson, Tony Anderson, Lance Arnold, Ron Baggott, Garry Baker, Harold Ball, Ron Barassi, Percy Beames, John Beckwith, George Rickford, Ray Biffin, Barry Bourke, Harry Brereton, Cameron Bruce, Keith Carroll, Geoff Case, Albert Chadwick, Noel Clarke, Geof Collins, Jack Collins, Chris Connolly, Bob Corbett, Denis Cordner, Don Cordner, Ted Cordner, Vin Coutie, Harry Coy, Jim Davidson, Frank Davis, Ross Dillon, Carl Ditterich, Brian Dixon, Len Dockett, Adrian Dullard, Hugh Dunbar, Richie Emselle, Fred Fanning, Jeff Farmer, Matthew Febey, Steven Febey, Dick Fenton-Smith, Rolie Fischer, Robert Flower, Laurie Fowler, Maurice Gibb, Peter Giles, Terry Gleeson, Brad Green, Rod Grinter, George Haines, Gary Hardeman, Henry Harrison, Gerard Healy, Greg Healy, Dick Hingston, Paul Hopgood, Danny Hughes, Anthony Ingerson, Eddie Jackson, Alan Johnson, Bob B. Johnson, Tassie Johnson, Trevor Johnson, Travis Johnstone, Gordon Jones, Les Jones, Bryan Kenneally, Allan La Fontaine, Clyde Laidlaw, Frank Langley, Jack Leith, Andrew Leoncelli, Chalie Liley, Wally Lock, Harry Long, John Lord, Andy Lovell, Brett Lovett, Glenn Lovett, Garry Lyon, Hassa Mann, George Margitich, Peter Marquis, Bernie Massey, Anthony McDonald, James McDonald, Fred McGinis, JP McGrath, Bob McKenzie, Col McLean, Ian McLean, Noel McMahen, Ken Melville, Laurie Mithen, Peter Moore, Jack Mueller, David Neitz, Stephen Newport, Jack O'Keefe, Andrew Obst, Gordon Ogden, Greg Parke, AM Pearce, Jack Purse, Ian Ridley, Guy Rigoni, Frank Roberts, Russell Robertson, Alby Rodda, Brian Roet, Peter Rohde, Alan Rowarth, David Schwarz, Norm Smith, Steven Smith, Earl Spalding, Stuart Spencer, Charlie Streeter, Steven Stretch, Jim Stynes, Tony Sullivan, Dick Taylor, Ted Thomas, Ian Thorogood, Stephen Tingay, John Townsend, Keith Truscott, Geoff Tunbridge, Bill Tymms, Barrie Vagg, Frank Vine, Todd Viney, Ivor Warne-Smith, Ray Wartman, Athol Webb, Greg Wells, Jeff White, Sean Wight, Don Williams, Brian Wilson, Stan Wittman, Shane Woewodin, Graeme Yeats, Charlie Young, Adem Yze

Some controversy surrounded the inclusion of current assistant coach Chris Connolly (who had played less than 100 games) and several current players and the non-inclusion of players such as Tom Wills (founder), Allen Jakovich and Troy Broadbridge (who died but not during wartime).

Individual awards

Best and Fairest

See Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Medal

Brownlow Medal winners

• Ivor Warne-Smith (1926, 1928)
• Don Cordner (1946)
• Brian Wilson (1982)
• Peter Moore (1984)
• Jim Stynes (1991)
• Shane Woewodin (2000)

Leigh Matthews Trophy

• Jim Stynes (1991)

Coleman Medal winners

• David Neitz (2002)

Mark of the Year winners

• Shaun Smith (1995) (also informally dubbed Mark of the Century)
• Michael Newton (2007)

Goal of the Year winners

• Jeff Farmer (1998)

All-Australian players (since 1990)

• Jim Stynes (1991, 1993)
• Garry Lyon (1993, 1994, 1995)
• Stephen Tingay (1994)
• Todd Viney (1998)
• Jeff Farmer (2000)
• Adem Yze (2002)
• David Neitz (1995, 2002)
• Jeff White (2004)
• James McDonald (2006)

National team representatives (since 2003)

• Clint Bizzell (2003)
• Aaron Davey (2005, 2006)
• Brent Moloney (2005)
• Russell Robertson (2005)
• James McDonald (2006)

Club Mascot

Main article: AFL Mascot Manor

Rotten Ronald Deeman - Melbourne Football Club's mascot at the MCG

The current club mascot is Rotten Ronald Deeman, or also known as Ruckle.

He carries a trident, has devil horns and has a pointed Devil tail.

See also

See also: Category:Melbourne Football Club players

External links

• Official Website of the Melbourne Football Club
• Demonland - Unofficial Website of the Melbourne Football Club
• Demonology - Unofficial Website of the Melbourne Football Club
• "Around the Grounds" - Web Documentary - MCG
• Melbourne Demons Discussion Board on BigFooty.